Estee Lauder to Close Prescriptives

OH MY GOODNESS! I can’t believe it!

In a long-anticipated move, the Estée Lauder Cos. Inc. said Thursday it will shut down wholesale distribution of its 30-year-old Prescriptives brand by Jan. 31. Products will continue to be available through the brand’s Web site for consumers needing replenishment, until supplies run out.

“A core component of the Estée Lauder Companies’ corporate strategy is to evaluate, and where possible, turn around underperforming brands with the goal of improving return on investment. After a thorough analysis of the Prescriptives brand, management concluded that the brand’s long-term business model is no longer viable given the current market environment. We believe that the difficult decision relating to Prescriptives will allow us to redirect our resources to key strategic imperatives where we see the highest growth potential,” said Freda.

MAC Trend F/W ’09 Collection Review: Asphalt Flower

Asphalt Flower is described by MAC as, “A deep dark, erotic fragrance that takes its place in our Trend F/W ’09 collection as the aromatic complement to this alt-fashion look. Features glossy violet and iris petals, vanilla and patchouli with top notes of violet, ylang-ylang; mid-notes of iris, heliotrope and a finale of olibanum, patchouli and M∙A∙C signature vanilla.”

I’m still a bit under the weather, so it’s hard for me to review something I’m only partially smelling, but I’ll tell you what I can so you have at least some inkling of whether or not this scent is for you. Once it dries down, I detect just a hint of floral, some patchouli, and a little sweetness of vanilla, but it smells a bit soapy to me.

I will also say that I am so glad to see MAC put out a fragrance as a rollerball scent. It’s so much easier to apply and great to keep in your purse for on-the-go. The bottle itself has a great clear to black gradient that looks exactly what I’d expect from MAC. Such an improvement over the Stylistics scent Air of Style, which had a fantastic bottle, but it was utterly impractical and sits in a drawer somewhere because it can’t stand up on its own whatsoever!

MAC Trend F/W ’09 Collection Review: Lipglasses

MAC Trend F/W Collection launches in-store today across North America locations, and the collection includes four lipsticks, three lipglasses, an eyeshadow quad, and a fragrance.

Lipglass

Runway Fave is a creamy nude with gold and pink shimmer that goes on semi-opaque but still sheer enough that your natural lip color will pop through. It’s pretty, but it’s probably a shade you have something similar to already.

New Berry is a darker berry with just a touch of burgundy to it that looks lovely and very holiday. It would pair well with Hipster lipstick for sure. It does have a tendency to settle into the lines of your lips, but I find that it’s not really noticeable in-person so much as it is when in photos that are magnified! I like that it’s fairly opaque–not solid to be sure–but opaque enough that it gives me plenty of color.

So This Season is a red-based purple shade that looks more intimidating in the tube than on. It is definitely a darker shade and casts purple, though. For those who want to try a vampy lip, I actually think this might be one way to go, because it’s sheerer and softer than many purple lipsticks that have come out for fall. Like New Berry, this one can settle into lines on your lips, but again, in person, the effect is not so noticeable.

I liked the lipglasses more than the lipsticks this time around! I felt like all three lipglasses were pretty and wearable, but they also are perfect shades for the fall season. I also appreciated how pigmented they were, even Runway Fave, because I tire of sheer glosses easily. New Berry may not be a must for those who already have indulged in red and berry glosses before, but it’s a nice, non-shimmery shade.

Product: 8/10

Value: 8/10

Ease of Use: 8/10

Packaging: 8/10

Recommendation: I think So This Season is a must, just because it’s different and fun. The other two are nice, but not as necessary!

MAC Trend F/W ’09 Collection Review: Lipsticks

MAC Trend F/W Collection launches in-store today across North America locations, and the collection includes four lipsticks, three lipglasses, an eyeshadow quad, and a fragrance.

Lipstick

Hipster is a burgundy-berry with a hint of red shimmer laced through it that comes off as very holiday-esque. It is a frost finish lipstick, and it has been out previously (though I didn’t have it). It applies fairly evenly (though not super creamy–felt a little dry) and goes on opaque. This is kind of the same family as Odyssey.

Red Full-Stop is a glossy coral-pink with no shimmer but lots of shine. It is a lustre finish, but it is one of the most opaque lustre lipsticks I’ve ever seen. This shade reminded me of Fusion (PRO) or Eager (which may run a little pinker).

Faultlessly F/W is a deep, dark purple berry with cool-tones and just a pinch of red in the undertones. It has an amplified creme finish, and it applies opaque. It should be worn with a lip liner, as the creaminess tends to make this one have a propensity to bleed. It’s similar to Cyber, though not the same (but I haven’t swatched Cyber in awhile).

Our Pick is a light coffee brown shade with a creamy texture, no real shimmer, and a satin finish. This is not a shade I can wear alone, and even mixed with others, requires some planning and experimenting. I’d say this is in the family of Spirit and Mocha, but it feels a bit cool.

While none of the colors struck me as immediate, must-have colors for my fall makeup wardrobe, all four were different enough from previous launches and had good color pay off — even the lustre. I think Fautlessly F/W is an interesting shade, but it is also a shade that requires confidence to pull off; it’s very, very vampy and dark and everything the fall trend of dark lips is. Hipster would make a lovely holiday lip, and I could see it being even lovelier when layered with a red shimmered gloss to help bring out the redness in it.

Red Full-Stop is like a toned-down version of Fusion (PRO) or Eager. I thought Eager was permanent, but after checking, looks like it’s not. See Sheer or Vegas Volt are both similar, but they both run a bit more orange. Our Pick just looks terrible on me–it’s like a darker concealer on my lips–but layered with other shades, it’s more wearable, but not a favorite for me. I am sure it will work well on others, though!

Product: 8/10

Value: 8/10

Ease of Use: 8/10

Packaging: 8/10

Recommendation: None are really must-haves in my book; I think Hipster makes a greaty holiday shade, and I like the coral tone of Red Full-Stop (why call it red?) the most out of the four.

MAC Trend F/W ’09 Collection Review: Tone: Grey Eyeshadow Quad

MAC Trend F/W Collectionlaunches in-store today across North America locations, and the collection includes four lipsticks, three lipglasses, an eyeshadow quad, and a fragrance. The Tone: Grey Eyeshadow Quad consists of four eyeshadows, all cool-toned with a mixture of finishes.

Tone: Grey Eyeshadow Quad ($36.00 U.S. / $43.00 CDN)

A Warmer White is a cool-toned satiny white that casts a bit green. The pigmentation is decent and doesn’t come off looking too stark or chalky.

Tone: Grey is a soft, medium grey with a satin finish that has a cool blue-gray sheen. The pigmentation level is decent, though not intense; the shade itself is a bit muted.

The Right Smoke is a bright medium-dark blue with a soft blue sheen and has a frost finish. This is like a bluer Deep Truth (or if you mixed Freshwater and Deep Truth together). I’m so tired of seeing this blue, I can’t even tell you how much! This shade is the most pigmented of the four.

Waft is a dirty taupe grey–kind of pewter, but not quite–with a taupe sheen and a frost finish. Like the other shadows in this quad, it has decent color pay off, but it’s not intensely pigmented.

The eyeshadow quad actually reminds me of the Gentle Fume eyeshadow quad from Smoke Signals. It isn’t the same, but at first glance, it definitely was reminiscent of it (it doesn’t help that Waft was also in the Gentle Fume quad!). The quad is a nice pairing of shadows for smoky looks with a cool-toned theme. I don’t think this quad is particularly unique or a must-have, because you could easily create the same kind of quad with existing MAC shades that would just as easily suit you.

For those looking for dupes, A Warmer White is similar to Gesso (but without the barely-there-green tint); Tone: Grey is similar to Scene; The Right Smoke is similar to Deep Truth; and Waft is similar to Print (but without the frost or taupe — add a touch of Satin Taupe to fix that).

To get an idea on what kind of look you could create with this quad, check out this silver, gray, and blue look I did using the Gentle Fume eyeshadow quad.

Product: 7/10

Value: 8/10

Ease of Use: 8/10

Packaging: 9/10

Recommendation: If you don’t have similar shades and are looking for a cool-toned, slightly blue-leaning smoky palette, you’d like this!